Gay Man Forced To Flee Turkmenistan For Being HIV-Positive

A gay man has been forced to leave his home country of Turkmenistan after he was arrested and assaulted for being HIV-positive, ‘Metro Weekly’ reports.

The man, who wants to protect his identity, said that he had to hide his sexuality while growing up because of Turkmenistan’s ban on homosexuality, punishable by up to two years in prison.

After the mean was diagnosed with HIV and while he attended an HIV/AIDS clinic to register for treatment in the capital city of Ashgabat, police were alerted and were waiting for him when he returned for a follow-up appointment.

“The officers asked me how I got infected [and] I told them I didn’t know,” he said.

The following day, three officers appeared at his apartment and took him to a local police station. “First they questioned me. Then began to beat me badly,” he said.

“They told me: ‘We know where you got HIV. You’re gay.’ I told them that it’s not true. But they kept beating me.”

He said that they demanded he “sign some documents” admitting his sexuality.

“I refused but they said if I don’t sign it they would tell all my relatives that I’m gay,” he continued. “I had to sign the papers, although I don’t know what exactly was written in them.”

After the incident, in fear of what might follow, the man fled to Russia. From there, with the help of an LGBT+ rights group he applied for asylum in Europe. Although he now lives a free life he can’t return home for fear he is still a wanted man in Turkmenistan.

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